Saxon Left Party leadership duo to remain in office

Many members want the Saxon Left Party leadership duo of Susanne Schaper and Stefan Hartmann to remain in office until a party conference after the federal elections on February 23, 2025. At the very least, a motion has been submitted to the state party conference in Neukieritzsch near Leipzig on Saturday to remove the planned new election from the agenda. Schaper and Hartmann had announced their withdrawal in order to concentrate on their work at the head of the parliamentary group in the state parliament.

Left wants to work responsibly in opposition

For the work in parliament, Schaper announced a "responsible opposition". Specifically, the Left Party wants to play its part in ensuring that the state parliament adopts a double budget as quickly as possible that secures the necessary funds for social, cultural and structural infrastructure. Clubs and associations must be relieved of the fear that they will no longer be able to carry out their work. "The focus is on people," said the party leader, formulating her party's brand essence.

"We need stability and planning security. That will be our most important concern," emphasized Schaper. "We don't need any more exercises in straddling the political aisle for self-promoters". "That is irresponsible in these times."

CDU cannot count on votes from the left as a matter of course

Hartmann also commented on the failure of the exploratory talks for a government between the CDU, the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) and the SPD in Saxony. The BSW had terminated the exploratory talks the previous week: "Even we would not have expected the BSW's façade of responsibility to collapse so quickly." Schaper left open the question of whether her party would vote for Minister President Michael Kretschmer (CDU). The CDU should not expect to get the votes of the Left Party," added Hartmann.

The Left Party in Saxony currently has around 6,100 members after almost 1,000 new members joined this year. The party spoke of the largest increase in membership since the fall of communism. 200 delegates are expected to attend the party conference, including the new federal chairwoman Ines Schwerdtner.